The Final Protector
by kats96
Summary: A spell was cast during the war between the humans and the fairies that called for an anniversary battle. With the anniversary quickly approaching, Artemis and Holly may be the only hopes of saving the People, even if it means doing something irreversible.
1. Prologues

Prologue 1

Ten thousand years ago, the fairies were driven belowground after losing the battle against the humans. Most fairies accepted their fate and were willing to relocate, if it meant saving their race from further antagonizing. But not all felt this way. Some fairies defied the humans and stayed among them, battling them the rest of their lives, unable to admit defeat.

But one fairy, a certain demon warlock by the name of Qwinn, took matters into his own hands. With a vow to avenge the fairy people, Qwinn cast a spell over the battlefield. The spell could only be nullified if a living human-fairy hybrid recited the 17th passage from the Baahke, the warlock version of the Booke; or if a hybrid was born naturally on the battlefield with only the mother and father present. A hybrid would show that the two races have been joined together, thus eliminating the need for battle. Otherwise, on the 10,000-year anniversary of the battle, the humans and fairies would be driven together to fight again…

Prologue 2

"He's beautiful, Leonor. Just like his mother."

"Or his father," replied Leonor, smiling up at her husband.

Turnball Root gazed at the child in his wife's arms. Their child.

"What should we name him?"

"Liam," said Leonor without hesitation. "Liam Garret Root. I've certainly had enough time to think of a name, what with you gone all the time."

Turnball flinched, the words stinging slightly since he knew they were true. "Darling, you know that my work sometimes requires me to be away from you for long periods of time. I hate it as much as you do, and you know that I count the hours until we see each other again."

Leonor nodded. "I know, Turnball. I don't mind much anymore. But what about Liam? He needs his father around while he grows up. Someone to admire and look up to, someone whose footsteps he can follow."

Turnball took his wife's hand. "But Leonor, I have to support us somehow. How will we afford to take care of Liam if I don't work?"

"Can't you find other work, Turnball? I need you to be here for Liam. I can't raise him on my own."

_Give up crime when he was #1 on the Most Dangerous Criminals list? If he did that, someone else could take his place, and he would slowly slip into obscurity._

"Very well, Leonor," Turnball sighed. "For you and Liam, I will try to find work closer to home."

"Thank you, dear. You know how hard it's going to be, raising Liam. He's going to have to deal with a lot of adversity due to his… unique qualities."

It was true; Liam was part human, part fairy. His ears were pointed, his cheekbones strongly chiseled, and he seemed slightly smaller than the average infant. Who knew what he would have to deal with later in life?

Prologue 3

"Mother, I can't go with you and Father."

"Liam…"

"No. I'm tired of moving whenever Father says. I can never develop any lasting relationships with anyone. I'm old enough to decide for myself when and where I want to live."

"But Liam, you're not…"

Liam glared at his mother. "I'm not what, Mother? Normal? I know! I've had to live like this for 18 years, always evading questions as to my peculiar appearance. I know I'm different! Is that so horrible? It wouldn't be so bad if everyone didn't make such a big deal out of it. But I guess that's just human nature." He spat the last sentence out, knowing just how much it would hurt his mother.

Tears pricked at Leonor's eyes. "Not all humans are bad," she whispered, unable to say anything else. Her son's words had crippled her.

Turnball entered the room. "What is going on in here?"

Leonor turned to her husband, quickly wiping away her tears. She knew he was not one for showing such weakness, so she would keep her emotions to herself. "Maybe you can talk some sense into your son. He is refusing to move with us."

Turnball looked at his son. "Is this true, Liam?"

"Yes, Father. All my life, you and Mother have moved me here and there and everywhere. To 'protect' me. I don't want to be sheltered for the rest of my life. I want to be free, independent. I want to make my own decisions and live my own life."

"He just can't, Turnball. He won't be able to make it on his own. The world is dangerous for someone like him," said Leonor.

"No," Turnball said. "He's right. He needs to learn to take care of himself. We won't be around forever, and he has to know what to do when we're not here for him."

"Turnball!" cried Leonor, outraged that her husband had turned against her as well.

"Leonor, it's for the best. Liam is a man now, and he is more than capable of living his own life." Turnball extended his hand to his son. Liam grasped it and shook.

"Thank you, Father."

Turnball nodded tersely. "Keep in touch. Let us know how you're doing every once in a while. For your mother's sake."

"I will."

"Come on, Leonor. We need to leave now."

Leonor hugged her son briefly, still wounded by his words. "Take care of yourself, dear," she murmured.

"I will, Mother. I promise."

"I love you," she whispered.

Turnball led his wife to the door, holding her hand tightly.

"That boy's going to have trouble later on," Leonor said to her husband. "I just know it. Something's going to give him trouble, and we won't be able to help."


	2. Chapter 1

_**Fowl Manor, Present Day**_

Artemis was sitting at his desk when the message came through. It was from Foaly, marked urgent. Artemis knew that the centaur had a tendency to exaggerate the actual urgency of situations, but for some reason, he knew this was serious.

_Artemis-_

_ Holly is on her way to bring you to Haven. We have a potential emergency involving the clash of humans and fairies. Details upon your arrival. –F_

_A clash between the humans and fairies? What did that mean? But then again, he said it was only a potential emergency. That wasn't as bad as a full-blown emergency, was it?_

Butler poked his head into the room. "Artemis, you have a visitor. It's…"

"Holly, I know. Send her in."

The elf entered, fatigue written across her face. "Let's go, Mud Boy. The sooner we get going, the better."

"Rough day, Captain?" Artemis asked, attempting the casual pleasantries that his mother assured him would ease conversation-starting.

"The worst," sighed Holly. "And now Foaly thinks he has such important news that I had to drop everything and come to the surface to get you. I'm beat; there's nothing I'd rather do than go home and sleep, but that's not in my schedule anymore." Holly leaned against the doorframe, rubbing her temples. "Foaly had better have a good reason for this meeting."

"Ah, Holly, Artemis. Glad you're here."

"Wish I could say the same," spat Holly, still irritable about having to be there in the first place. "This better be good, Foaly."

"Oh, it is. If by good you mean bad. Extremely bad. Catastrophically bad."

"Get on with it, Foaly," Artemis urged anxiously as Holly cracked her knuckles.

"Very well," Foaly said, clearing his throat. "During the war between the humans and fairies, where the humans eventually forced us belowground, a spell was cast on the final battlefield. This spell stated that in 10,000 years, the humans and fairies would be forced together to fight on the anniversary of the battle in hopes of avenging the wrongs that were done unto the fairies by the humans. This spell was cast by an extremely intelligent demon warlock who made the spell nearly unbreakable."

"Nearly?" said Holly. "Then it can still be broken."

"In theory," replied Foaly. "We all know that the People would stand no chance against the humans. We may have the technology, but we sure don't have the numbers, or the brutality, for that matter. There are only two ways the spell can be broken. One is that these words…" Foaly handed Holly a scrap of paper, "are read on the site of the battle by a human-fairy hybrid, showing that the races are united and do not need to fight."

"And is there such a creature?" Artemis asked.

"As a matter of fact, I think so," said Foaly. "Some of our aboveground satellites have been picking up some images of someone I believe to be Liam Root, son of Turnball Root and his wife, Leonor. They did an exceptional job of keeping his birth and childhood a secret, but not well enough to escape _all _my searches."

"Wait, Turnball had a son?" Holly asked incredulously. "I don't believe it."

Foaly shrugged. "Believe it or not, he may be our only option."

Artemis looked thoughtful, as if pondering something. "Foaly, you said there were two ways. What's the other possibility?"

Foaly glanced down. "Oh, right. The only other way to stop the spell is if a human-fairy hybrid is born on the site in the presence of only the mother and the father."

Artemis nodded slowly, already grasping what that would mean. Holly, however, did not realize the implications.

"So even if we can't find Liam, or if he doesn't exist, there's still hope." She looked at Artemis and Foaly. "What's so bad about that? You two look as if it's the end of the world."

"She doesn't get it," said Artemis. "She doesn't know what this means."

Holly frowned. "What don't I get?"

Artemis put his hands on her shoulders, looking her straight in the eye. "Holly. Think about it. A human-fairy hybrid. Meaning the child of a human and a fairy. A human and a fairy who know each other and would be willing to help the People…" He stared at her intensely, hoping the reality would bore itself into her mind.

It did. "Oh gods," she whispered.


	3. Chapter 2

"Oh gods," Holly repeated. "Oh gods, no, no! No! You can't be serious! You mean that you and I would… Absolutely not."

"Now Holly," started Foaly. He was abruptly cut off.

"Foaly, you'd better be right about Liam. Because I am not about to have a child with that Mud Boy." She gestured wildly in Artemis's direction. "I'm not ready for that responsibility, and I'm certainly not comfortable with the idea of…"

"Holly," Foaly tried again. "Listen to me. This is strictly a back-up. Trouble is out with a full squadron of our best Reconnaissance fairies. Some footage from one of our satellites came up with a lead in the eastern US. If he's out there, they'll find him."

"_If?_" Holly shrieked. "_If _he's out there? See? You don't even know if he exists for sure. This is all just speculation!" She stormed around the room, knocking over chairs and kicking the walls. "I signed up for LEPrecon to protect the People. Had I known I'd be expected to take on this kind of responsibility, I never would have dreamed of joining."

Artemis tried consoling the elf, but consolation was not one of Artemis's talents. "Holly, I understand your anger. I don't want to do this anymore than you do, but if it comes down to it, we have to do whatever we can to protect the People. Remember what Root told you? It's not about what's best for you; it's about what's best for the People. As an LEP officer, it is your duty to help the People in any way you can. And as your friend, I am willing to help you."

Holly looked up, fury blazing in her eyes. "Gods, Artemis, why are you so calm about this? Don't you realize that his will change our lives? Can't you just once show a little emotion? Do you always have to be good under pressure? Why can't you be like the rest of us who show their frustration?!" She took a deep breath. "If you'll excuse me, I'd like to be alone." She pushed past Artemis and threw open the door, slamming it on her way out.

"I'm kind of glad Holly's gone," said Foaly after the walls stopped shaking. "I want to talk to you about this… shall we say… situation."

"What about it?"

"Like I said, we're hot on the trail of Liam, but there is always the chance of something going wrong. From what I've been able to find, Liam has had a rough time. He's unstable. Being part human, part fairy has affected him mentally. All his life, he's felt rejection, ostracized from his peers. The guy is a walking head case. It's only a matter of time until he explodes. So I think it would be best if we started looking into Option #2."

"But is this really fair to Holly?" asked Artemis. "She's been through a lot, and I'm not sure she can handle this."

"She'll get over it," Foaly assured him. "She just needs some time to cool off and think it over. I'm sure she'll still be reluctant, but reluctance is better than refusal."

"Speaking of reluctance…" Artemis looked down at his feet. "I'm not very sure of this myself. I respect Holly, and we've become very close friends over the years, but I just don't think I can… you know…" He waved his hand around, not comfortable with expressing himself entirely.

For once, Foaly actually sympathized with the Mud Boy. "I understand, Artemis. You'll be out of your comfort zone, embarking on a journey into uncharted territory…"

"How profound," Artemis said drily. "You should write a poem."

"Face it, Artemis. It is what it is. The sooner you accept it, the easier it is to move forward with your life. Besides, it's to help the People. Artemis, you know what humans are capable of, and you know that the fairy People will have no chance if this battle is fought. You'll be a hero to us, Artemis."

"It's not that simple, Foaly. I'm not sure I want to be a hero. I won't be the same person, and neither will Holly."

Foaly sighed, placing a hand on Artemis's shoulder. "I don't know what else to tell you, other than what you told Holly. It's not about what's best for you. It's about what's best for the People. You've been a good friend to the People, Artemis, and you've gotten us out of more than one jam. Surely this is no different."

It was Artemis's turn to sigh. "I suppose you're right."

The teen frowned, reassessing the situation. Finally, he spoke. "Foaly, you said it has to be a human-fairy hybrid born on the battlefield, in the presence of the mother and father, correct?"

"Yes…" the centaur replied warily.

"Why didn't I think of it sooner?" Artemis murmured. "This would solve everything!"

"What, Mud Boy?"

"In vitro fertilization."

Foaly grimaced. "Hate to tell you this, Artemis, but the spell calls for a naturally-born child. That sort of technology didn't exist 10,000 years ago, so the spell would most likely continue as planned. I could try it, but there's no guarantee it will work, and by the time we'd know, it'd be too late to do anything else."

Just then, a beep emanated from Foaly's computer screen. "It's Trouble," said the centaur. "Video conference. That can only mean one thing."

"What?" asked Artemis.

Foaly put on his business face. "Go find Holly. She needs to hear this."


	4. Chapter 3

Artemis returned with Holly, who seemed mostly calm. Her cheeks were still flushed with anger, and a spark of defiance glowed in her eyes.

"What's the crisis now?" she snapped.

Foaly motioned toward the screen. "Video conference with Kelp."

Holly turned to look at the screen, nodding at Commander Kelp. "What do we know?"

Trouble leaned toward the screen. "We succeeded in locating Liam Root."

Holly breathed out a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods."

"But…" continued Trouble. "There were complications in the retrieval."

Holly's stomach churned. _Complications? What did that mean?_

"I have some footage. It'd probably be easiest to show you rather than tell you."

Trouble's face disappeared from the screen, and a video flickered on in his place, displaying rolling green hills dotted with brightly colored wildflowers. A rare sight in the land of Mud. Holly felt the same raw aching she always felt when she thought of all that the humans had taken away from them. All the beauty that they destroyed or ignored, if they managed not to build more structures to support their explosive population.

The camera panned the scene before settling on a figure standing near a lone oak tree.

"This is footage from Corporal Jones's helmet feed," Trouble's voice-over stated. "Everything he said and saw is what you'll be reviewing."

The figure turned toward the camera, possibly sensing the fairy's approach, a puzzled expression on his face.

"We only sent Jones in," explained Trouble. "We didn't want Liam to feel overwhelmed, what with his mental condition."

Corporal Jones must have unshielded, because a look of recognition crossed Liam's face.

"You're a fairy," said Liam, almost accusingly.

Jones landed in front of him and spoke: "Yes, Liam. There's nothing for you to be afraid of. I'm here to take you to…"

Jones's camera feed suddenly showed blue sky, wisps of clouds floating above. Liam stood over him, a gun in his hands.

"Liam pushed Jones down? Why?" asked Holly.

"Shhh," Trouble hissed. "Listen."

The gun shook in Liam's hand. "You're LEP, aren't you? Here to cage me up like you did to my father. You want me to pay for his crimes now that he's dead. He warned me you would be after me, sooner or later. Told me to avoid you at all costs. Looks like it'll cost you your life."

Corporal Jones, a fairly new recruit but extremely sharp on the field, took a deep breath. "You don't understand, Liam. It's not like that. I'm only taking you to the Tara battlefield, not to prison. Besides, the LEP doesn't hold children responsible for their parents' crimes."

"You're lying. All police officers lie to try to lure their victims into a sense of trustworthiness. 'Oh, it'll be okay. We're not going to hurt you, we're not going to put you in jail…' Bullshit."

Jones ignored the insult. "I'm telling you what I'm doing, and I'm telling you the truth."

"Let's pretend you are. What's so special about this Tara battlefield? Do you have a police shuttle there, ready to whisk me away?"

Jones shook his head. "No. I was told that it's something about a spell that you have the power to stop."

Liam snorted, the gun jittering in his hand, pointing at Corporal Jones's head. "Oh, come now. Surely you can come up with a better story than that. How long have you been doing this?"

"Four months now," Jones said proudly. "All my life, I dreamed of being on the LEP force. Commander Kelp says he's never seen someone so young be so successful in such a short amount of time."

"True," said Trouble. "Though I'm not sure that's as impressive as he makes it sound, considering I've only been Commander for a few years."

On screen, Liam was considering Jones's statement. "Hmm… Inexperienced _and_ arrogant. Not a good combination."

Jones was losing the battle, but he didn't know it yet. "Are you going to come quietly, or do I have to restrain you?"

Liam threw back his head and laughed, lifting the gun and shooting off a warning shot into the air. "You must be joking! Seriously? You are no longer in a state of authority, in case you hadn't noticed. I am. And I will not come quietly and you will not restrain me because you are going to die." Liam leveled the gun at Corporal Jones's head, cocked the pistol and pulled the trigger. A single bullet erupted from the stock.

Suddenly the camera lens filled with the face of Liam Root. "Ah, a camera," he said to the now dead Corporal Jones. "Very clever. You were filming us the whole time in case I tried to pull something. And I did, but your back-up cavalry never came to save you. What a pity. Such an eager young fairy with a whole career ahead of him. Not anymore."

The screen turned to static as the camera was destroyed.

"Do we still have audio?" asked Foaly.

Liam's voice crackled through the speakers, as if answering Foaly's question personally. "A word of advice for the rest of the LEP: If you follow me, your fate will be the same as Corporal Idiot's. I have no obligation to you or your race, so I don't give shit about your goddamn spell. You made my father's life hell while he was alive, so if you mess with me, I'd be glad to return the favor."

Trouble's face returned to the screen. "So there you have it," he said grimly.

"D'Arvit," muttered Foaly.

"We can't let him get away with this; he's a murderer," protested Holly. "We're authorized to apprehend him now that he's committed a crime."

Trouble shook his head. "You heard his threat, Holly. Anyone we send to arrest him will only be killed. Liam Root is insane, to put it simply. There will be no reasoning with him, and I am not about to send good fairies to their deaths."

Holly ran a hand through her auburn hair. "So now what?" she asked, a knot already forming in her stomach. She knew what, but the reality of what they were going to have to face was just too hard to admit.

"I'm afraid it's up to you and Artemis now," Foaly said tightly. "You're our only hope."

Holly leaned up against the wall, her head spinning slightly. When she woke up that morning, she figured it would be another typical day on the job. She had gotten used to, and comfortable with, normalcy. But now…

Trouble glanced at Holly. "I'm sure you three have a lot to discuss, so I'll leave you." He terminated the link, and the screen went blank.

Foaly breathed a nervous sigh of relief. "Good. I want to discuss these things privately with you, and having Trouble around could make for an awkward situation."

"Foaly, you're babbling," Artemis pointed out.

"Right, sorry. Down to business."

"I have a question," Holly said. "If we were to, you know… do this… Pregnancy is a long process. And we can't have much time, what with the spell and all."

"I'm so glad you brought that up," Foaly replied. "The medical clinics have been working on a new drug to try to improve reproductive rates." He turned to Artemis. "Most fairies can only reproduce once every 20 years. If there was a major crisis, say a plague outbreak, our population could be completely decimated. The drugs, however, did not turn out exactly the way they planned. But it's good news for us because the drugs actually speed up the process of pregnancy. Instead of the usual nine months of fetal development, it'll only take two."

"Whoopee," Holly said sarcastically. "Did they create any drugs that would enable the male to give birth instead of the female? Now _that_ would be useful."

"Holly," warned Foaly. "You promised to cooperate."

"I consented. That's different."

"Anyway," Foaly continued. "Since the anniversary of the battle is a little over two months away, this works out perfectly for us."

"Yeah. Just peachy," retorted Holly.

"Listen to me, Holly," Foaly snapped. "There's nothing I can tell you to make you feel better about all this. I can't tell you that you don't have to do this, because we both know you do. You don't hear Artemis complaining."

Holly snorted. "I wonder why that is. I bet he's enjoying this. Ever since that time in the cage at Rathdown Park, he's dreamed of this moment."

"Holly," Artemis said. "That's not true, and you know it. I'm only doing this for the People."

"Damn you, Artemis!" Holly shouted. "Why do you _always_ have to be the People's hero? It's not your job to help the People; it's mine. Why can't you put up a bit of a fight?"

"Fighting and protesting will get us nowhere," Artemis said. "It's for the best. The sooner the better, right, Foaly?"

"Holly, he's right," said Foaly. "We're running out of time, and the more time you waste arguing, the closer the anniversary gets. It's now or never."

"Can I at least have a day to think it over?"

"What's to think about, Holly? All the cards are on the table, and it's your move. The game can't go on forever."

Artemis set his hand on her arm. "It'll be okay, Holly. I promise."

She flung his hand off. "Don't start."

Foaly, who had kept his tongue in check, couldn't resist a parting jibe. "Yeah, Artemis. Save it for the bedroom."

If looks could kill, Holly's glare would have bored a hole straight through the centaur's skull.


	5. Chapter 4

_Two months later_

Artemis knew that something was wrong the minute he woke up. He wasn't one to believe in intuition, but a hard lump had formed in his stomach, gnawing away at him.

His communicator beeped. Foaly's voice crackled through. "We're sending a shuttle. It's time."

Now the lump had jumped to his throat, making it impossible to breathe. Artemis had thought about this moment a lot over the past couple of months, imagining how he would react. But now that the moment was here, he felt frozen, paralyzed. Then his intellect took over.

"Get ahold of yourself, Artemis," he ordered himself, swallowing down the lump. "There's nothing to be worried about…"

"Holly, there's nothing to be worried about," Foaly assured her. "A shuttle is on its way to pick up Artemis. He'll be there when you get there."

"Please come with me, Foaly," Holly begged. "I'm scared." Two months ago, Holly would have been appalled at the very thought of admitting this aloud, but now it didn't matter.

"Holly, you know I can't fit into one of those things." Holly was near tears now. Foaly sighed. "Okay, okay, I give up." He boarded the shuttle and extended a hand to Holly. She took it gratefully, and he pulled her inside.

"Thank you," Holly whispered.

Artemis knew that this day would haunt him for the rest of his life. Holly's cries and wails of agony pierced through the air and ripped at his soul. He hated seeing her in pain, but there was nothing he could do for her.

Holly's forehead was slick with sweat, a few stray hairs stuck to it. She moaned and hissed and swore and screamed. Never had Artemis wanted to run as far away as possible as much as he did now.

He took Holly's hand in both of his and squeezed it gently. "I'm here, Holly. It's going to be okay."

Holly's body tensed and her back arched sharply. Then she relaxed, and a painful smile crept onto her face.

"It's no use," she whispered. "It's over. We failed."

Artemis shook his head. "Holly, I don't understand…"

"I could feel the baby's magic. But it's gone. The spark has burnt out. We lost it."

"No."

"Artemis, I know. Trust me. I'm…" Holly fell silent, and her hand became limp in Artemis's grasp.

"Holly, don't! I can't lose both of you! Holly, please!" Artemis felt tears stinging and burning his eyes. "Holly, please don't die."

"I'm sorry," Holly whispered weakly, her eyes closing. "I'm sorry, Artemis."

Artemis squeezed her hand tighter. "Holly, no…" But she was gone. He laid his head on her chest, listening to the silence. He sobbed openly now. They _had_ failed.

Artemis cried until his eyes were dry and his sobs tapered off into quiet whimpers. He didn't know how long he stayed there with Holly, but he heard the sounds of gunshots in the distance.

The battle had begun.


	6. Chapter 5

_From the journal of Mulch Diggums:_

_**Hello world. My, you are a different place. Heck, you're so different that I, Mulch Diggums, known criminal and thief, have resorted to reflecting on my life. There's nothing else for me to do.**_

_**Over the course of the last few months, the humans and fairies were engaged in a bloodbath of revenge. And for what? Nothing.**_

_**The humans are all dead. Some killed by fairies, but most killed by themselves. Yes, those humans are… er, were funny folks. Liked to fight a lot. Didn't matter why- they just got a real kick out of murdering each other. It's like they saw there was a war going on and thought, **__Hey, what a great opportunity to get back at all the people I hate. I don't know what the reason for this war is, but I don't care. Just as long as I get to kill innocent people, I'll be happy._

_**Most of the fairies are dead as well. Only select groups were spared. Dwarfs, for example. We hate the sun, so why would we travel to the surface to risk our lives? Best case scenario, we would have been killed on the spot. Unlikely, though. We would most likely have gotten our skin fried by the sun, and that would have killed us. Call us cowards, call us lucky, call us clever. Doesn't matter. Point is, we're still alive. But with all our, shall we say, emissions, Earth has been transformed into a gaseous ball, much like Jupiter.**_

_**Unfortunately, those blasted goblins survived as well. Gods know how, seeing as those guys are dumber than the dirt I ate for breakfast this morning. However, with their fireballs and all the dwarf gas… There have been more than a few explosions.**_

_**There's a rumor going around saying the demons are on the moon and that No.1 transported them there to save them from the battle. It wouldn't surprise me if it were true. From what I hear, that little imp is quite a powerful warlock. Then again, nothing would surprise me these days. I have seen my world of dirt, stealing stuff, food, and running from the cops be transformed into a living nightmare. Every day I wake up and hope that all of this was just a bad dream. It's hard for me to admit, but I miss the people I would begrudgingly call my friends. Artemis, Holly, Butler, Juliet… Even Foaly, though if he were still alive, I would deny any feelings of camaraderie.**_

_**So that's how I came to writing a journal. Sad, isn't it? But what do you expect me to do? There are no rich humans to rob from, no fairy police officers to run from… I don't have anything to live for anymore.**_

_**Amazing how quickly our lives can change…**_


	7. Chapter 6

_**The Moon**_

_No.1's mind_

"Okay, okay, time to focus, No.1. There's gotta be something you can do. You have to do something…"

I'll admit it, I panicked during the battle. All I could think about was that time on Hybras with Abbott. I couldn't imagine letting more of my demon brothers and sister die. So I acted selfishly and whisked us away to the moon.

I don't know what's been going on down on Earth, but from here, it looks like the end of the world. Earth's once breath-taking swirls of green and blue have been replaced with brown murk. It hurts to see the planet I've grown to love so much dying like it is.

I've been a mess. I can't think straight. The battle haunts me. My nights are filed with visions of my friends' deaths. Even though I wasn't around to witness them, I can feel their absence. It leaves me cold and hollow inside.

So now I've decided to focus my mind on setting things right. There must be something I can try, a spell or incantation that will make everything right again.

Qwan says it can't be done, but I don't believe him. Hope is dangerous, I know, but it's worth it. I have to hold on to the hope that I can change things because the alternative is too painful…

"Qwan, Qwan, I've got it! I know how to bring everyone back!" No.1 rushed into the warlock's office bursting with energy.

Qwan looked up from his work and gave his apprentice a scornful look. "Impossible. I told you, No.1, you need to let this go. There's nothing you can do."

"No, no, there is! I've been poring over the Baahke, trying to think like Qwinn so that I could figure out how he created the spell so I can undo it. And I think I can create a spell to reverse time, bringing back everyone who dies, and get rid of Qwinn's spell at the same time!"

Qwan smiled sadly, and a sliver of condescension slipped into his voice. "No.1, I realize that you are an extremely brilliant and talented warlock who is suffering from depression due to the loss of your friends and the life you used to know, but this is something even you are not capable of. Don't you think that if there was a way to change things, I would have figured it out? You are young and naïve. Compared to me, you have nearly no experience."

"No, Qwan," No.1 said firmly. "You have no idea what I can do. I just pretend I'm not as good as you so you can still feel like you're teaching me something. So believe me when I say I can do this."

The runes on No.1's scales began to spiral and glow as the young warlock muttered a chant under his breath.

"No.1 please stop before you do something you can't reverse," ordered Qwan. "You're…" He was cut off as a bright light exploded in front of him and time and space shattered like glass.


	8. Epilogues

Epilogue 1

Foaly rubbed his eyes, feeling rather disorientated. What had he just been doing?

No.1 burst into his office, took one look at him, and gave him a huge grin. "Am I ever glad to see you!" exclaimed the warlock.

Foaly was perplexed. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"Quick, Foaly. I need you to look up the demon warlock Qwinn and his spell cast at the Battle of Tailte. About bringing the humans and fairies together on the 10,000-year anniversary of the battle to fight again."

"I don't need to look that up to tell you there is no such thing. No.1, are you feeling alright?"

"It worked!" shrieked No.1. "It actually worked! And Qwan said it couldn't be done!" The demon raced out, leaving Foaly to puzzle over what had just happened.

Epilogue 2

Holly jolted awake and glanced at her clock. She gasped; what was she doing still in bed? She should be at work. Why hadn't her alarm gone off?

The she remembered. Today was her much-needed day off. She'd had such a rough day yesterday, co rough that it had been continued in her dream…

She shuddered. What a dream that had been. She and Artemis… No, no, she couldn't think about that again. Once was bad enough.

Her gaze drifted to her nightstand and fell on the book she'd been reading.

"Never again," she said, tossing the smut novel in the trash.

Artemis gasped for breath as he woke from the most horrific nightmare he'd ever had. The skin on his face felt tight. The tears he cried in his dream must have been real, soaking into his skin as he slept.

Just to make sure, he turned on his communicator. "Holly?"

"Yeah?" She sounded groggy, like she had just woken up.

"Just checking in on you," he said, feeling embarrassed at having called her over nothing and embarrassed about what they did together in his dream.

Holly sounded uncomfortable as well. Her voice was strained when she answered. "I'm fine. Why?"

"I… No reason. Just feeling a bit unnerved, I guess. I had a rough night last night." He truly regretted calling her now because all he could think about was how he saw her in his dream…

"Yeah, so did I."

Awkward silence ensued.

"Artemis, since there was no point in you calling me, can we please pretend that this conversation never happened?"

"Done."

Epilogue 3

I've been living my life afraid of becoming my father. I know he was a criminal. My mother never knew, but I did. I kept it a secret, hoping my father would see the errors of his ways. He never did. I was hoping he would see that there was no need for him to be a crook and that he would turn his life around and become a warm, loving father to me. I wanted him in my life, but he chose crime over his own son. Can you blame me for becoming such a whack-job?

I wasn't an outcast growing up. I pushed people away. I was afraid once they knew me, they would automatically assume I was exactly like my father. Or worse yet, that I would become him and choose crime over their love. I didn't want that to happen.

But something has changed. I feel different. I want the world to know ne. I want them to know my name and associate it with me. Not my father.

Turnball Root is dead, and I will not take his place. I, Liam Garret Root, am my own person. It's time I learn that and become the man I was meant to be, not hiding for fear of becoming a man I won't ever be.


End file.
